OUR COLUMNISTS Using Pentecost Politically -- the Latest on Hillary and Company Commentary by Matt Friedeman The next time you hear a speaker say he or she loves the poor, ask this question: "What are the names of the poor people you love?" Truth, Justice, and All That Stuff Commentary by Joe Murray Superman, the legendary Man of Steel, has always stood for "truth, justice, and the American way." This is no more. He has now shed the stars and stripes for a chic new global persona. Curing a Disease That 'Wasn't' Commentary by Jane Jimenez The big story about HPV has been the new vaccine introduced by Merck. The bigger story that doesn't make the news is the story about a disease that didn't exist until we had a cure for it. The Mocking Throng Commentary by Brad Locke We mock what we do not understand. That's why most Americans find soccer boring and/or pointless. But to mock something that someone else holds dear is rather insensitive. Out-of-Bounds Campus Drinking Commentary by Mark Creech Eliminating alcohol outlets, not adding them on college property, is a proven, successful strategy for protecting students.

...One of the Senate's leading Republicans says the United States is engaged in a new world war against Islamic fascism. Pennsylvania's Rick Santorum says many Americans will not say so for fear of offending Muslims, but he believes "the real offense to Muslims is to remain silent about an ideology that produces the systemic murder of innocents." He says terrorist attacks worldwide, the war in Iraq and Israel's fight against Iran-backed Hezbollah are all battlefronts in a war that Americans will either win or lose, but cannot avoid. To win, Santorum said he believes the United States will have to overthrow an Iranian regime intent on acquiring nuclear weapons. [AP]

...The founder of a new political party in Israel says not all of the Islamic world is happy with the actions of the terrorist group Hezbollah, which has forced Israel to take strong military action in Lebanon. He believes a full-scale civil war could erupt between Sunnis and Shiites. Avi Lipkin leads Israel's new Bible Bloc Party, which is designed to represent the interest of the nation's Christian minority. The author and Middle East expert says many Arabs do not think Hezbollah is representing the best interests of Lebanon. "The Saudis and the Egyptians, you know, a lot of these Sunni Muslim countries are very critical of Hezbollah because the Hezbollah do represent Iran," says Lipkin, "and they are not representing the best interests of Lebanon, which is an Arab nation. The Iranians are Indo-European Muslims." And Lipkin says Hezbollah is being supported by countries that consider the United States their biggest threat. "All of this is at the behest of the Iranians and the Syrians, which is at the behest of Russia, China, and North Korea," he states. "America is seen as the ultimate enemy by the communists, by the Muslims, and it's interesting that it's the non-democratic countries that see democracy as such a threat." So Lipkin believes Russia, China, and North Korea are helping Iran and Syria foment the terrorist violence to ultimately bring down the U.S. [Chad Groening]

...A Messianic believer and best-selling author believes it is too early to tell if recent events in the Middle East might be a sign that a 2,500-year Old Testament prophecy will soon be fulfilled. Joel Rosenberg served as a senior aide to former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The author of the novel The Ezekiel Option believes the recent announcement of Russian President Vladimir Putin should raise the eyebrows of biblical scholars. Putin said he wants Russian troops to participate in a possible U.N. peacekeeping force in the Middle East. Rosenberg says in Ezekiel 38 and 39, "Gog" -- which many scholars believe is Russia -- joins Iran and other nations in an unsuccessful attack on Israel. "Ezekiel talked about Russia and Iran and these other countries trying to destroy Israel in the last days before the return of Christ," the author notes. "It's too early to say that's what's happening right now, but the notion of Russia entering this very dangerous situation, I find very concerning. And I think Russia entering the Middle East with ground forces would be massively destabilizing." Rosenberg says it is "uncanny" that a prophet who lived 2,500 years ago could see what seems to be the beginnings of this conflict right now. [Chad Groening]

...A satellite television station continues to beam Christian programs to the Arab world, despite heavy shelling near studios in Beirut, Lebanon. SAT 7 is a Christian satellite TV station that broadcasts programming throughout the Middle East. Naji Daoud, Lebanon bureau director for SAT 7, says many employees of the Christian media outlet are depressed about fighting and destruction in the area. "We really want to pray for their safety. We really want to pray for the Lord to uplift their morale, their spirits," says Daoud. "And we want to pray for the whole country, for peace. We want to pray for the future of Lebanon, that what is happening now will be for the good of Lebanon in the future." Lebanese Christians, he says, are helping non-Christians who are fleeing the hot spots. "A lot of people are displaced to the Christian area, so what we're really looking at is showing them the good Christian testimony, helping them, giving them aid," he says. He shares that possibly, this is the Lord "opening a new door" for Christians in that area. [Allie Martin]

...A Colorado-based ministry is honoring mothers and fathers as President George W. Bush makes a special proclamation. Earlier this month President Bush proclaimed Sunday, July 23, as "Parents' Day." In the proclamation the president said the day helps pay tribute to the hard work and sacrifice of millions of devoted parents who provide guidance, support, and unconditional love to their children. Focus on the Family will publish stories about parents in its daily Internet news site called "CitizenLink." Gary Schneeberger, editor of CitizenLink, says the special day honors committed parents. "In his proclamation, President Bush sort of captured what parenting is all about and what Focus on the Family stands for," says the Christian journalist. "We try to minister to parents. One of the things that the President says in his proclamation is that mothers and fathers 'help kindle imaginations, inspire a love of learning, nurture the formation of young minds, and give children the courage and the drive to realize their dreams.' What about that isn't worth honoring?" On Sunday, says Schneeberger, CitizenLink will be releasing a special edition of its daily e-mail update that will include a sampling of the comments it has already received from hundreds from readers. He says it will also include a "roundup of comments of the folks that we can get from the pro-family movement who might have some things to say." He says he is hopeful that when the e-mail hits people's mailboxes on Sunday morning, it will cause some readers to "just reflect on what their own parents mean to them." In his proclamation, President Bush said his administration supports grants and programs to promote healthy marriages and responsible fatherhood. [Allie Martin]

...Georgia is the latest state to see a challenge to its marriage amendment defeated -- and one pro-family advocate says it's about time. Several state courts have ruled in recent weeks in favor of those who support traditional marriage and their efforts to get state amendments to protect that institution. Don Swarthout of the advocacy group Christians Reviving America's Values was delighted to see the Georgia Supreme Court uphold that state's marriage amendment. "The law was passed legally, and it is clearly favored by the vast majority of people," notes Swarthout. "And so I was real tickled that the Supreme Court of Georgia ruled in favor of protecting marriage." He believes that the courts are beginning to listen to the voice of the people, who through the voting booth are overwhelmingly supporting traditional marriage. "I feel like the average person is being heard more now than ever before," he adds. Along with Georgia, courts in Tennessee, Connecticut, and Nebraska have quashed challenges to the marriage amendments on the state books -- and even in Massachusetts, the only state that has legalized same-sex "marriage," the Supreme Judicial Court said people have the right to challenge that law. [Bill Fancher]

...A New Mexico city whose name literally means "the crosses" is being sued to force removal of three crosses from its logo. Paul Weinbaum and Martin Boyd of Las Cruces filed a federal lawsuit against the city last year, alleging that the emblem violates separation of church and state by promoting religion. The lawsuit also accuses Las Cruces of violating the Civil Rights Act by requiring prospective employees to sign job applications that include the logo. City manager Terrence Moore says Las Cruces has spent more than $16,000 dollars defending itself against the lawsuit so far. The trial is set to begin in November. [AP]

...A Kansas-base pro-life group wants the public to know what the inside of an abortion clinic looks like, so they bought one, shut it down, and then opened it for public viewing. Operation Rescue (OR) recently purchased the Central Women's Services abortion facility in Wichita, and promptly closed it. Now the place is open for public inspection. OR president Troy Newman says they want people to see for themselves the deplorable conditions to which women were subjected. "We think of it as kind of arbitrary or theoretical, but every abortion kills an innocent baby and injures a woman. And so, inside this abortion clinic, we found absolutely putrid, squalid conditions," shares Newman. He describes those conditions as "extremely dirty" and likely not able to pass any local ordinance inspection. "We found cockroaches and rats [in the facility]," he adds. "I mean, you wouldn't want to have your teeth cleaned in this facility, let alone have an invasive surgical procedure done here." Newmans points out that last year Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius vetoes legislation that would have forced abortion clinics to clean up their facilities. [Rusty Pugh]

...It appears hurricane damage and the war in Iraq are not the only reasons why gas pump prices have skyrocketed in recent months. Americans have become almost conditioned to the now routine response to questions about high gas prices, attributing those rising costs to Hurricane Katrina damage to refineries and Gulf of Mexico drilling facilities, along with global concerns about the war on terrorism. But now comes word of a third significant reason for gas price woes: China's booming economy. Chinese oil imports have hit record highs, up 17 percent in the first half of this year. In fact, China is now the world's third-largest oil importer, after the U.S. and Japan. And analysts say that extra demand for fuel is have a key impact on global oil prices. So it would appear that while Westerners seem to enjoy the increasing amount of cheap Chinese-made goods in their department stores, they are paying for it at the gas pump. [Fred Jackson]

...In the wake of the U.S. House's passage last week of a bill to restrict online gambling, a federal grand jury has indicted a British Internet gambling company and issued a temporary restraining order to prevent the company from taking bets. The Department of Justice announced a 22-count indictment by a federal grand jury against BetOnSports PLC; its founder, Gary Stephen Kaplan; ten other individuals; and three other corporations. Charges from the June indictment, unsealed this week, include racketeering, conspiracy, and fraud. It alleges Kaplan violated federal laws while operating online gambling offshore in Costa Rica, and taking American bets by phone and over the Internet. The indictment also asks for $4.5 billion in forfeitures from $3.3 billion in wagers taken without tax payment to the U.S. And it may eventually test the United States' apparent intention to make Internet bets join phone bets as illegal violations of the Federal Wire Act. A bill that prohibited bank and credit card payment instruments for use in online gambling passed the House of Representatives last week, and still must clear the Senate. [Ed Thomas]

...Marriott Hotels has banned smoking from their rooms -- now Concerned Women for America is wondering when the chain is going to ban another health hazard: pay-per-view pornography. "We've been after Marriott for years to stop providing pay-per-view porn," says Jan LaRue, CWA's chief counsel. "But their excuse is that 'some' customers want it." LaRue figures that percentage of customers is relatively small -- say, five percent. "If it's only about five percent, they've lost that excuse," she maintains. "I'm guessing that their cut from porn is a lot bigger than their cut from cigarette machines in the lobby." In its announcement, Marriott cited that the demand for non-smoking rooms "continues to rise with new information from the Surgeon General on the hazards of secondary smoke." LaRue wonders why the worldwide hotelier is listening only the report about health hazards related to smoking. "What about former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop's report on the dangerous consequences of viewing pornography?" she asks. "What about the mental and psychological health consequences related to dependency on porn?" LaRue suggests that Marriott eliminate pornography as an amenity, thereby creating what she describes as a "truly safe and wholesome environment" -- and likely seeing a boost in sales as a result. [Jody Brown]

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